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Southeast
Construction Magazine: July 2006 Issue |
Can
Harry Mashburn Bring a New Direction to the Construction Industry?
By Ted Garrison |
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When I
ask audiences, “How many people think the construction
industry is better off today than say 10 or 15 years
ago?” only a few people raise their hands. Those
who do often mention safety or technology. However,
when I ask about stress, confrontation, or more profitability
the hands go down.
The
responses indicate that change is needed. Harry Mashburn,
as the new president of the AGC of America, has an opportunity
to set a new direction. For sure, he can’t turn
the ship around by himself, but he can certainly toot
the horn for needed change. From the bully pulpit
of the largest trade association in the industry, Mashburn
has the opportunity to make a difference. (Mashburn
is founder and president of Mashburn Construction Co.
of Columbia, S.C.)
Various
industry groups must stop fighting each other. Instead,
they must work together. Successful companies understand
they must take care of their customers, employees and
subcontractors, while maintaining their own financial
health. The first step is for the contractor to use
it’s experience and knowledge for the benefit
of the client. Mashburn’s theme for his presidency,
“contractors as the owners’ advocate”
is the attitude that’s needed.
While
some believe that highly competitive low-price bidding
is the best way to go, the evidence does not bear this
out. Instead, the low-bid environment lowers quality,
increases confrontation, lowers efficiency and reduces
contractor profits.
In the recent Constructor cover story, Mashburn
hints at the solution with his statement, “Early
collaboration is the key to a project’s success.
That includes major vendors too. Architects and engineers
need to design according to the capability of materials,
and they need to know about that up front. It means
establishing a new type of relationship among all parties
involved in a project.”
Contractors have a lot to offer, a lot more than simply
finding the cheapest way to install something or the
ability to get someone else to do it for less. Instead
they need to use their knowledge and experience to increase
innovation to find better solutions. Mashburn
says, “We want owners to look to the construction
industry, and specifically, contractors, as professionals
who are a vital part of the whole process, not just
a commodity.”
Dr. Dean Kashiwagi, director of the Performance Based
Studies Research Group and Professor at Arizona State
has learned from his study of best value procurement
that there is no correlation between quality and cost.
This means when contractors are allowed to compete based
on performance—delivering the customer’s
desired results—instead of following plans and
specs, the high-performing contractors deliver better
results, often at lower costs, while increasing their
own profit margins.
This approach also encourages investment in training.
On the other hand, the low-bid environment discourages
training, because training increases costs.
Meanwhile, the low-bid environment discourages training
because some of these contractors merely want workers
to follow the plans and specs. If the contractor deviates
from the plans and specs, it could be in trouble. However,
if the plans and specs don’t work, then it gets
a change order. In contrast, in the performance-based
approach, a contractor encourages its workers to find
the best way to doing things. This requires worker development.
Beyond the short-term benefit to the project, this approach
will attract better workers. When potential workers
begin to understand we want them for their brains and
not just their brawn, we will begin attracting better
people. Since the greatest threat to the industry is
the lack of skilled workers, a performance-based approach
is essential to turning that condition around. Mashburn’s
president is something everyone in the industry should
support. He’s trying to turn the ship of industry
in a direction that will benefit everyone. But he needs
all our support.
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